Ruby Green: The Art of Auditioning

Have you ever stumbled upon the same plot in different movies and thought, "What are the odds?" Well, we hit the jackpot with Ruby Green, who joins us to unravel the mystery of multiple "Thirst Trap" short films converging in the New Orleans film scene. Our laughter-filled chat takes us behind the scenes, as Ruby, a seasoned casting director, producer, and production manager, dishes on the uncanny coincidences that filmmakers often face. She also teases our minds with the potential of uniting these "Thirst Traps" into one expansive crossover universe—a creative endeavor that we cannot wait to see unfold.

Ruby's story is as colorful and textured as the streets of New Orleans. Raised in the city's musical embrace, she takes us down memory lane, from her childhood dreams to her transformative leap into the casting realm. It's a tale of serendipity and street scouting, of embracing the gothic charm and how it shaped her aesthetic sensibilities. Ruby doesn't stop there; she generously shares nuggets of wisdom for actors mastering the self-tape audition. Her advice? Keep it simple, be confident, and nail the technical details. If you've aspired to catch the eye of a casting director, Ruby's insights are your roadmap to making an impression.

Wrapping things up, we venture into the practicalities of the casting world, demystifying the casting platforms and the actor-casting director dynamic. Ruby offers a peek into her decision-making process, highlighting the significance of authenticity and clarity in communications. If you're keen to stay on top of casting calls in the NOLA film scene and beyond, following @rudebellycasting on Instagram is a must. In the spirit of continuous learning and connection, we also suggest checking out Active Access, where narrative projects come alive. With Ruby's stories and tips in your arsenal, your next audition could be the gateway to your big break!

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Hello, this is Ruby. I am a local casting director, producer, production manager and somehow I have found myself here on NOLA Film Scene.

Speaker 2: 0:13

NOLA Film Scene. Hello, welcome to NOLA Film Scene with TJ Play-Doh. I'm TJ and, as always, I'm Play-Doh.

Speaker 3: 0:29

We're back with another episode of NOLA Film Scene. We're here with Cast and Director and producer Ruby Green. Ruby, thank you for joining us.

Speaker 1: 0:37

You're welcome, thanks for having me and can't wait to get into it. I'm excited. Excellent, okay.

Speaker 2: 0:44

That was good.

Speaker 1: 0:46

Radio is interesting. I love I listen to a lot of podcasts so I'm like I've always been like what's it been like to record that? I'm happy you're doing more because I saw that you guys, it was like a finale and I was like, oh no, I hope I didn't reach out just and last, but yeah, exciting.

Speaker 2: 1:01

We overworked TJ when we started, because I'm not a techno foe but techno timid. I guess you would say Okay. And so he was doing it all and I didn't know how bad it was. And a few weeks in he goes. Man, I'm not even having time to audition. I was like what? Oh, I didn't know, and I said I'll just buy the Adobe package. So I added it together, take the air out, make it flow nice and right, hand it over to him and then he plays. I say plays, sound engineer. He is a sound engineer with it. I don't want to disparage what you do, tj. Don't miss the guy off. He'll make you sound bad. No, I wouldn't. I know you won't. It's a pleasure, ruby, it's good to see you again.

Speaker 1: 1:37

Yeah, wonderful, excited we can make it work. What's up with you guys?

Speaker 2: 1:43

Auditioning, auditioning, auditioning for some great casting directors like you. We all met on my second thirst trap.

Speaker 3: 1:52

That's right.

Speaker 2: 1:53

It's a vampire short to the folks out there. Set in New Orleans, involves tourism. And when our friend Josh Stevenson, director of death trip, reached out to me and said, hey, you want to come do this scene, I was like cool, it's a vampire short. Cool, it's called thirst trap. You know I've already been in that. Right, he's like what? And it was already completed. So and that's fine, I'm in one and two. I have been challenged by the director of the first one that I have to write my own thirst trap. Now I don't want to give it away, but I'll tell you here calling it thirst traps. And then I want Lizzie and John, both of them to be in it, if not everybody who's been in both, but anyway, that's all else.

Speaker 1: 2:26

Absolutely no. Yeah, you were one of the first people that brought that to our attention for the people listening. I'm the producer of thirst trap. It is a short film, independent short we made in March of 2023. And, Brian, you're one of the first people to bring it to our attention that there was other thirst trap short films that existed, and not only with the same title but essentially with the same premise. Our thirst trap is about French quarter dwelling woman turned vampire who goes on dating apps to find her victims and that had been done, like after some research. Now, like, there's like two or three other short films with that same kind of premise. Ours is different and I think ours is the best one. But yeah, that's definitely been an internal joke. Lizzie and I were joking the other day about we need to do a thirst trap multiverse crossover of all the different thirst traps because this is the same world. But yeah, does the other thirst trap director? Is he aware of our project? Have you spoken with him? He is aware of our project.

Speaker 2: 3:27

Okay, when the not the kick started, but the post production, go fund me because I was going to push it and I did, and it's like it's not like I had to tell him, but it's like, dude, I'm about to start promoting this. Yours is just starting for festivals. He's like that's cool, you know, it's not like it's different enough that one is more the vampires going to dating app and bringing a victim and it's a short thing and I'm a country bumpkin tourist who gets eaten in that one and in yours I'm in a bachelor party, rowdy and nasty, and I go on a tour, but I won't tell the folks at home what happens to me. You'll have to see it one day.

Speaker 1: 4:00

Yeah, that's kind of been a question to navigating, as I guess in my role like do I reach out to? Should we come together? Like, even from the beginning, I was like, should I reach out to this director, these people that have done this project? Is there a conversation that needs to be had? Is this a it? Should we change the name? Is this going to be weird? Or submitting in the same years they're submitting the festivals. It sounds like they've already done their submissions for the most part. But yeah, I think we definitely are cutting edge above them and it's like a slightly different thing. But we're rolling with it and we're sticking to Arthur's trap and maybe one day we can do a crossover of every one of them, because there's a lot.

Speaker 2: 4:40

I love them both and they're different enough to be Different.

Speaker 1: 4:45

Yeah, it's fun, yeah, and it was yeah.

Speaker 3: 4:48

Yeah, cross over would be fun.

Speaker 1: 4:50

Yeah, definitely, thinking about it too is a series, because we are having that discussion Now. We're buffing up all of our profiles, getting the file and the package ready to submit this coming month. So we're Lizzie and the team, yeah, we're sort of writing it like oh, it's a pilot, but it also is a short. And in that conversation of like this could be a pilot, you start thinking about the episodes and for some of these series, specific festivals you have to put together like a series outline. I don't know Definitely there's like a multi-verse, like in all these episodes there could be multiple vampires who are all friends and do anyway, yeah. So it's been fun to think about that and we're sort of have to come up with a. How can we? Can we also sell this as a pilot as well, maybe? Yeah.

Speaker 2: 5:37

Excellent, excellent.

Speaker 1: 5:40

So it feels more. The structure of it feels more pilot than a traditional short film, but it's still like a 30 minute long form short film. So fingers crossed on all of that.

Speaker 2: 5:50

Yeah, fangs crossed. Yeah, I can't wait.

Speaker 1: 5:54

We have to come up with more puns, because that kind of been our whole social media strategy. Yeah, and it was really wonderful to have you guys yeah, I think People like that on our shoot, like you guys, coming out for this vital role. It's like a big late night crowd scene is just so helpful and like help make everything possible. That's how we basically made this movie was from people in the community that wanted to share their talents and skills and be a part of it, you know, for the sake of it. So that was nice, yeah.

Speaker 2: 6:21

I don't mind not that I want to do everything in life for free but it was for lunch, it was for friends and it was a chance to play. It was great.

Speaker 1: 6:26

Yeah, yeah and this is all of our first times doing this in this level too Me, sam and Lizzie. Hopefully this will open doors, but I think this is definitely the first narrative that I have produced that wasn't just like a make it in your garage with your friends thing.

Speaker 2: 6:39

Right, yeah, it was very professional.

Speaker 3: 6:42

Yeah, I thought so too. Yeah, and going out to stuff like that. I mean, yeah, there's times where you have to do projects for no pay, not really paying your dues, but you know, just getting into the industry, the bigger picture is making those connections and making friends and meeting people and finding people to collaborate with at different times. That's the bigger payoff for me is meeting the different people.

Speaker 1: 7:04

Yeah, and connections, for you never know, and that's a big lesson. That's, I think, how all of us survive in the industry is off of the philosophy is you never know what is going to come of something, or what that person you worked with or connected with three years ago, how that could come up again in the future for something?

Speaker 2: 7:21

Yeah, oh, like your level, Josh Stevenson's level, working with friends for free on my side working with my friends for free. But I believe that y'all have the talent and the will and the professionalism to go to the next level so that when you start paying people, you may be like I'm a bald guy. Yeah, he was pretty cool. Let me give him a call. You know what I mean? Yeah.

Speaker 1: 7:38

Not that.

Speaker 2: 7:39

That's why you do it, but it's an added benefit. Oh yeah, that's part of the making your connection there. So, to switch gears a little bit Ruby. I almost said Ruby. To switch gears a little bit Ruby. What we've been asking people is how did they get started? What was their inspiration? To be an entertainer, producer, casting director? Where did your journey begin?

Speaker 1: 7:57

I don't know. I feel like ever since I was a kid I was like I don't want to do a normal person job, I want to be in something creative. And, coming from New Orleans and a musical family, doing something creative, I guess, was something I knew I could do, something I felt I was entitled to and something I saw myself as like oh, people can do this in life and as a career and it's something you can do. So I was like that seems awesome. But I think it was just the fascination with movies and music videos and that at a very young age I mean I was a nineties kid, so like VHS's and all of that and like the internet.

Speaker 1: 8:36

When that did happen it just felt like so new and I was just so fascinated with like media. I wanted to be a pop star. That was my first dream. It's like I wanted to be Britney Spears and then it pivoted to. I just wanted to make movies of myself on my dad's camera and like would make little homemade movies.

Speaker 1: 8:54

And then that sort of transitioned to me in high school like really loving taking pictures of me and my friends and I kind of coincided with the whole era of like going out like indie sleaze, like everyone taking pictures and like posting it on my space and Facebook. So that's like how my, I guess, looking back and like, oh, that's like documentary film photography and I was like really fascinated with like capturing me and my friends' stories at this time. And then I actually wanted to be an actor. Yeah, I went to New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts for drama and that sort of followed the like wanting to be a musician on stage.

Speaker 1: 9:29

No-transcript, I guess I want to be an actor, but that's still just stemmed from just being like, oh, I really just want to be in the movies or I want to work on the movies or I want to be involved in that. I just whether it's like the glamour, the capitalism, just what I was surrounded by, I don't know, I wasn't surrounded by people like baseball or sports people, I was just surrounded by like watching movies. So I was like that is what I want to do.

Speaker 2: 9:54

Their creativeness, the creative community touched you. You didn't even have to think about it especially with your family. You just flowed right into it, which is a great thing.

Speaker 1: 10:01

And I think being in the landscape of growing up in New Orleans is so gorgeous and my gothic, southern gothic you have the old architecture and that sort of beauty is actually not everywhere and I didn't realize that that beauty that we have in the landscapes here really did like seep into me and you take that for granted. But it's like, oh, I think that also inspired my aesthetic eye and like wanting to capture that beauty or like I don't know, that essence of the South and the people here. Yeah, I wanted to be an actor. I was at drama school and that high school program really pushes for all those students to go get their BFA. So I did all the auditions.

Speaker 1: 10:41

Senior year I went to NYU and got my BFA in drama from NYU, like directly after high school, and then I got a minor in producing because I realized acting was really hard to bank on about like sophomore year at Tisch and I was like I should probably pivot to like film classes or like learn how to work a boom, so I can at least have like a skill when I graduate and like get a job because it's a fancy degree. I'm getting in a lot of debt. I'm kind of freaking out about like graduating with the BFA. Now I didn't switch majors because it would add years, it would add money, it would add credits. I had to make up and it wasn't financially like wise or logistically wise to like change majors mid-schooling so continued with the acting and obviously had some amazing teachers Like that's like was a dream scenario, a dream school for a lot of people Like couldn't believe I was there. But yeah, then after that I needed a job and was living in New York and was like I'm just going to start PAing. And then just started like hitting the ground Facebook groups, emails, lpa, lpa, lpa and like started learning the ropes of that and basically decided that my film school was going to be in the field, working on set. And you know, you don't have to have a degree to be a PA or be on a film set. You don't need any schooling, you can just do that. But yeah, nyu was hard. Like I realized that it's like super hard to be an actor and I don't know if I'm cut out for it. Am I talented enough? The competition here is so fierce. I was young, I was 18. I was like trying to have fun in college, like I wasn't really ready to be in like Juilliard status and think of my career like that. I felt more ownership and going back to like I want to be a filmmaker and yeah.

Speaker 1: 12:23

Then casting came along through an internship in college as well. That was just. I happened to get an internship and my friend was a casting intern for this photographer, ryan McGinley, who's a pretty successful, famous photographer, who was big in the early 2000s in the Lower East Side New York scene and like came up in the early 2000s and now does photography for Boog and Beyonce and Harry Styles and all this stuff. She hooked me up with an internship as a casting intern for that Just signing the discredit and it was super awesome, super exciting.

Speaker 1: 12:55

I had to go with the casting director and street scout models because he was doing like a yearbook series, an ongoing yearbook series where he would photograph New York people in a studio and like a yearbook setting. So we were scouting for that sort of ongoing and through that I got a street scouting. I had pictures of people on my phone and I had their contacts and I was like, oh, I actually have like a portfolio of people that I've scouted on the streets. So I started like sending applying to more assistant jobs. Because I was like oh, I actually have a resume or a portfolio now, and then I kind of snowballed from there. I can go into the more recent history, but that's the origins back to, just like wanting to be Britney Spears.

Speaker 3: 13:34

Yeah, that's awesome.

Speaker 2: 13:35

Yeah, we love origin stories. Yeah, I mean, who didn't want to be Britney? I know I did.

Speaker 1: 13:40

That's all it was, and I never looked back.

Speaker 2: 13:43

Still, I did it again.

Speaker 1: 13:46

But the acting thing, I think, has totally helped me with the casting thing and as a director casting director, having done acting classes, being familiar with the acting techniques and what it is like to be on the other side really helps yeah.

Speaker 3: 14:00

I can see that.

Speaker 1: 14:02

And now at this point it's like well, what else am I going to do? You know you can't switch goals. Now I'm like, well, I'm in the film entertainment industry, we're going to try to make it work. Like, yeah, definitely.

Speaker 2: 14:12

TJ, do you have a question? Because I didn't want to monopolize it.

Speaker 3: 14:15

No, I did, but I lost it. Okay, I got caught up with what she was saying, got intrigued, yeah yeah, yeah for sure.

Speaker 2: 14:23

Cool as a casting director, because we talked to a lot of actors. What would you say to up and coming actors? Just some tips, some hints, way to calm down and not worry if you're going to get the part of anything you'd like to say to them. Help them out.

Speaker 1: 14:36

I would say definitely, don't overthink it, because you're thinking about how you're being perceived like thousands percent more than the other person is thinking about it. Also, the number one thing, and like the number one, like okay, are we engaged or not Is like are you comfortable? I know if you seem nervous, like on the self-tape, or if you don't start with just a strong like hi, hello, like you know who you are. I think that is when, like we disengage, but just like confidence in who you are and simplicity in that, if I were to whittle it down, we're not overthinking it and don't let the overthinking get it in your head. That's what I would say Excellent. We can get more into that conversation.

Speaker 1: 15:17

But most the type of it's like a self-tape. People look through those, like you know, it's like quick, like boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. I'm looking through self-tapes and we're stopping on just like a hint, even if it's not like a perfect acting moment or a perfect line, it's like I could just like the way that that person looks or the way that they're holding themselves. Seems similar to the character. Very small things like that.

Speaker 2: 15:41

You know within a minute or less that I'm watching it or next.

Speaker 1: 15:44

Or that you know within a minute or less if they're going to go to the next round. Right, obviously, when you're coming to like the decision of like am I going to cast, that's like a more debate. You whittle it down between like three people but in terms of like callbacks on like next round, pushing through you kind of, yeah, you pretty much know quickly, yeah, but I like to go through and take time. I'm not one of those super busy Hollywood casting directors at this point who has like two assistants looking through the self-tapes. And I think because being an actor like I really do like to give it all the time and give it with like a grain of salt, like everything, because I'm still building up my credibility and roster as a casting director, so I want to be able to submit through as many numbers just quantity as I can to show them that I can provide options. But I definitely like combing through more.

Speaker 1: 16:35

Sometimes it's honestly a technical issue too. I'm like, oh, I literally can only say half of their face. I literally can't hear them. I'm sorry, I literally don't even know what to do, that I have to move on. I can't see you, I can't hear you. Your audio is like doing a weird echoey thing. I can't understand a word you're saying. And people appreciate that just having that professional clean, like that's the first step. Please just like. Can I see your full face? Yeah?

Speaker 3: 16:57

Yeah, it seems basic, but I mean that's true. I look back to my very first self-tape and my backdrop wasn't great, my lighting wasn't great and as I've grown, looking back, that makes total sense. I've heard casting directors say they'll decide within the first and everyone's different 10, 15, 20 seconds whether or not they're going to watch the whole thing. And one casting director said if you start with a blank frame and you step into the frame, I'm not watching it onto the next one. And others have said that they'll watch all of them because they want to see what the options are.

Speaker 1: 17:31

Yeah, it definitely helps if you start in frame, like that's definitely a good starter. This other technical thing that was bothering me I think just having a quick slate Slates are really important so I can be like, okay, this person, it's a quick taste of who they are. I like to cast. I'm inclined to people like are they like the character? Like type casting, more true to the character, like what is this person's energy and do I see the character in that? I also like doing like open form questions, like tell us about your latest dream. I like doing that as like a casting too, because I want to see who the real person is. Yeah, the technical thing is a real thing and like that's professional. It's like, okay, this person's with it and they're taking care in that aspect too.

Speaker 3: 18:12

So do you prefer to see more of their natural self in the slate or more in character in the slate?

Speaker 1: 18:19

I think I like to see in character.

Speaker 1: 18:22

Oh wow, Whatever the characters and whatever the actors interpretation of that character is. Yeah, I think that really helps. I do, because it's like how would? If you're auditioning for Jeff, I want to see how Jeff would say hey, I'm Jeff, just woke up, but here's my audition tape, like if you're auditioning for a stoner. I think that's a really clever way to bring us in. Hey, I'm auditioning for stoner number one. I just woke up, but my name's Jeff and I'm auditioning for Larry. Like I don't know.

Speaker 3: 18:49

Oh, interesting.

Speaker 1: 18:50

But I don't know if that's industry standard. I kind of like that and I think it would help me. I'm still learning what industry standard is and I'm still trying to always work with more established casting directors or agents to like see what that protocol is. But casting is like kind of the Wild West. There's a lot of like different people in casting that do different projects that work different ways from like street casting, fashion casting, all that stuff. But I don't want to say a specific thing but like I think they both work. I want to see TJ, or I want to see like the character and a little TJ. Like I don't want to see a big caricature of it, I still want it to be minimal and natural. But a little bit of that character in the slate I think is nice. It transitions you into the scene too.

Speaker 2: 19:36

Yeah, that makes sense. So what you're saying is, the slate should be first.

Speaker 1: 19:41

Yeah, I like to see that first, just from an organizational, a logistical, and so I can keep straight of who I'm watching right now and what their height is, you know.

Speaker 2: 19:51

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 19:52

Yeah, I think Slay at the beginning.

Speaker 2: 19:54

I've been doing separate clips on Actors Access, so take one, take two sleep.

Speaker 1: 19:58

That works, dude, that's not a bad. I just think when people put like it all in one video, like they edit the slate, and then the thing it's like clean, I can just click on it and be like, oh there it is. But I'm the one looking through Breakdown Express, I'm the one opening the videos and whenever I send it through to the clients, like they still see it. But I think if you are really busy, it's just one, let's click. You have to do. I have the slate and the scene all in one video already and that's kind of it. It's like okay, sometimes I'll miss it because I click on the slate again.

Speaker 3: 20:29

Got you? Yeah, I always just do it. However they, whatever they say in the instructions, because every cast and director is different on how they ask for it Someone at separate, someone at together and I try to adhere to what they want because I mean, I feel like if you don't follow that simple instruction, they're going to see you as somebody that can't follow instructions and that's somebody that can't really perform on set.

Speaker 1: 20:52

Great point. Number one rule follow instructions and be responsive, like. That, obviously is number one Follow the instructions, and every cast and director is going to have a different like submission request, so you can adhere to that specifically. Yes, great. First of all because if you don't follow instruction, it just like adds more time and little inconvenience. If you do want to contact them, it's just more like okay, well, they didn't follow instruction. So let me try to wrangle this in.

Speaker 3: 21:20

You know I've actually got a question in the notes at the bottom at the end Do you prefer to see something in there every time, Like, do you want to see something down there?

Speaker 1: 21:33

Yeah, I'm like I'm just going to ask you a question and I sort of from doing more of the stuff. I'm like realizing what the function is of that. Thank you of the notes. I kind of think it's nice when people just put thank yous for the opportunity. It's just like this, like polite note. That's what I see it as.

Speaker 1: 21:49

The only other notes is that's very crucial is I am able to work with a New Orleans local. Like I think for someone like you, you're listed as New Orleans, so like you wouldn't have to put that by the law of the times, I'm doing local projects and there's like Florida, atlanta, georgia people and I have to go through them Like are you nor? I just need, I need to cut you to note and confirm that you are New Orleans local. I see a mad time that the go back and like look at, hunt down their profiles and see if they say if they can. I'm assuming they can because they submitted. But I would say either a thank you is really polite, thank you for the opportunity, and then a note again I'm able to work as a such and such local. Yeah, the most important thing to note there, yeah, or logistical stuff out of town this date or might have a shoot date on, might have a conflict, logistical stuff like that just to have yeah.

Speaker 3: 22:43

Now, do you see the notes at the bottom before we submit our media, or do you not see it until after we upload our media?

Speaker 1: 22:51

I believe it's live as soon as you put it in, but normally I go through once the media is uploaded because I know when the deadline is. But I believe it's live, but maybe not. I can't remember an exact point. But yes, pretty much if there's a note there it's live, because I've seen notes where there might be like oh, I'm submitting my tape a day late and I'll put that in the notes as a update on their thing and the tape hasn't been uploaded. But there's other ways to notify to that. You need the extension. But I've seen people put it in the notes as well.

Speaker 3: 23:21

Can you speak to that, like, how do you go about doing that Aside from having your agent reach out and do it?

Speaker 1: 23:27

You guys can message me anytime, probably on Active Access, right, it's just doing like one of the a C mail, as they call it, or you have gotten a C mail if I requested you to be at a callback. So just responding to that C mail, I would say, is the best way. Private messaging, I don't care about it. Sometimes it's just like okay, well then you'll miss the opportunity and that's due to the client. But I'm always happy to make sure people can get in and get seen and accommodate schedules.

Speaker 3: 23:56

I may sound like an uninformed question, but I didn't realize or maybe I just haven't figured out where the button is to do that. I didn't realize that there was the ability to message them like that and the reason I'm asking. I did an audition last month in the date pass, but it was for voice only and I got a message. I got a C mail and the only thing in the instructions was am I able to report from home? And my submission showed up at the bottom. You know, the media that I submitted before shows up down there, but there's no additional information there. It's not like a callback, it's not like anything I've ever seen before and it's unusual. I don't know what they're asking for other than for me to put down in the notes at the bottom. Yes, I do have a booth at home and can record. I guess maybe it's a dumb question. I didn't realize that that could be done.

Speaker 1: 24:45

Yeah. So I think that's a great scenario where in your note section, you would definitely put yes, I can record from home, like that's a specific thing that you're noting, that they're asking and wanting to see and I can't say exactly what. Your scenario? Because when we send messages to you so this person sent a C mail to you right when we send those messages, every time we send you either check or uncheck a box that says allow recipients to respond so you can send out blasts and updates to your, to your actors, and you pick or choose if you want to allow them to respond From all of my messages I click yes, allow recipients to respond, because I'm like this is the easiest way I see for them to respond back to me.

Speaker 1: 25:29

This person who sent you this message via C mail maybe had allow recipients not to respond, which is the default If you're sending a C mail from our side. So maybe it's that, maybe it's an accidental error on their part, or, if you want to communicate, if you're not seeing it, I think that's probably what has happened, like, but it's clicked allow recipients not to respond. I got you. I would maybe try to send them a message in the notes. Some people are also just like can you send me an email and put their email, because we're not allowed to ask for information or emails outside. You guys have to provide that. You realize that, right? If I ask you that's, I could get banned.

Speaker 1: 26:07

What I didn't realize, that For like zoom calls, zoom auditions right. The easiest way for me to do that is just to upload it onto the virtual callback portal on breakdown express. If I'm going around messaging all of my actors hey, what's your email? I'm going to send you a zoom call for the audition. Breakdown Express is that's against their policy because I'm advertising, I'm asking for private information from actors and sending them to a second party via C mail. So there's like a workaround where I can put the zoom address as the location in the portal.

Speaker 1: 26:42

But it's actually kind of funny A lot of the times I'm like is there any other way I can contact you with updated details? And then, like people will like I'll sort of prompt people to send me maybe their email if I don't have it in like weird terms, because I've almost gotten banned before for like blatantly in the even in my casting calls saying please put your contact information, like I need your phone email and this like yeah, which is why I like doing Instagram too, because I have my two different areas, yeah, and then, like the workaround, we can't explicitly ask, which is also why it's helpful to just put your email on your resume so I don't have to ask if I need to send you a zoom link or if there's specific details I can't share via breakdown, I can just email you. It's weird, yeah.

Speaker 3: 27:27

I think my email is in there, because I've gotten emails before outside of it. Checking availability yeah.

Speaker 2: 27:33

Yeah, I have my actor email, because I set up one in Gmail just for acting and I got a second phone number just for acting. There you go. That's in my upper right corner.

Speaker 1: 27:42

Yeah, or maybe I don't know. If there's an email you can back to TJ, you can find an email to contact this person. If you're unclear about what's being asked, you should definitely, I think, clarify. So I don't know. Maybe write it in the notes section.

Speaker 3: 27:56

I got one one time and they didn't include a side. The audition request didn't have a side at all and the instructions said read this to this in the side, and so I couldn't figure out a way to get in touch with casting. So I just contacted Actors Access through chat and in a matter of minutes the EcoCast was updated with a side. Actors Access reached across to the casting director and they went in and updated the EcoCast.

Speaker 1: 28:20

Yeah, there's human error a lot as well on both sides. So oh, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 3: 28:27

I can imagine the sheer volume of work that y'all have when y'all have to do a casting call like that.

Speaker 1: 28:34

It can be overwhelming and sometimes it's exciting. Sometimes there's not enough, sometimes it's just. But yeah, it's been a learning process, getting to know EcoCast and Breakdown Express and I feel confident on it now. But I also utilize other stuff like just word of mouth and Instagram casting and making my own databases through Airtable and not messing with any Breakdown Express, but it's very useful and it's very, I think if you want to be an actor, that's a great place to start and that's where all the agents are seeing and that's where all the projects are being posted and I use it when needed.

Speaker 3: 29:11

Do you use any other casting sites?

Speaker 1: 29:14

I have used like casting networks when I was doing stuff in LA. Here I'm pretty much doing actors access or Instagram or my website You're not going to find much here Louisiana and I'll use backgrounds for like extras, casting and stuff. Oh yeah, I'll use what's it called my casting file. But yeah, I feel like in New York there's more databases that are more populated, but those are kind of the main channels for New Orleans based stuff. I would say, yeah, playbill, I haven't used Playbill, like Playbill if you're doing a play. But yeah, sometimes I also run ads in anti-gravity. That's another thing I like to do. Anti-gravity.

Speaker 2: 29:55

You know the local publication, free publication, alternative publication yeah, I was trying to think of something in the industry and I'm going yeah, I know what you're talking about now.

Speaker 1: 30:05

Yeah, so I'll do. Sometimes I post casting ads in there, which is always fun.

Speaker 3: 30:09

Man, this is cool to get insight like this, definitely definitely.

Speaker 2: 30:13

For me, the slate part was like oh man, even putting it together, I thought the slate was supposed to be at the end, but now it's like all right, something else I got to think about, which is great.

Speaker 1: 30:21

I mean, yeah, maybe it's just my brain, but I'm like, oh, it's more seamless because I actually know what this person's name and all their info before I watch.

Speaker 2: 30:29

There's no one set rule to any of this. You know what I mean. Everybody likes it different. Everybody does it different with the general parameters.

Speaker 1: 30:37

Yeah, and I think we've been transparent about so much of it is cosmetic details your height, do you have a beard, do you have red hair? What do you present visually? So if we're transparent about that being such a trivial but that is a part of quick casting I think you guys should just open with that, because we are looking for those trivial physical attributes. That's a very important part of if we can move you forward Do you have the right color hair or do you look the right essence of this just off the bat. So I think if you put that information up front because sometimes the actors I'm like, are you putting it at the end because you think that's going to hurt your chances. But no matter what, those are just facts and that's just. Either it's going to help you or not. So let's be transparent about it and put it at the front.

Speaker 3: 31:23

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 31:24

Does that make?

Speaker 3: 31:24

sense I could see both ways of doing it. You know, put it at the front. I've always leaned more toward myself and not my character when I sleep, because my thought process has been to show them a little bit of my personality, because they want to get a sense of is this guy a jerk or is he? Will he be able to be worked with on set or is he going to be hard to get along with? But I can see the other side of it too and I can also see the value in putting it at the front for the height and the appearance, because you just may not you know, you may be six feet tall and the other lead actor actors may be five feet tall and it may not work in the scene. I mean, I see the value in that.

Speaker 1: 32:07

Yeah, also, sometimes it's the producer. The director is like, okay, all these guys are like, okay, these guys are too short. I just got word from the producer that they're wanting to go in a more tall direction. So I had to go back to all my self tapes and like, all right, I need to find more tall guys for them. I can now just go and say, oh, this guy's six. Okay, I at least can send him this guy because he's a tall guy. Sometimes things change and it's like it'll help you, it's like I need someone. Then, therefore, I can quickly go back to people Maybe I didn't submit at the beginning and be like, oh, this person is taller, exactly what they're looking for when we send it. And it's just like easy, quick, like to look up and confirm little details like that that you may need to know.

Speaker 3: 32:44

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 32:45

Cool. So a lot of the time it's about you and just like, yeah, I'm more of. Just are you authentic and are you confident in yourself?

Speaker 3: 32:53

Yeah, grounded is what I've been hearing a lot. That's the goal.

Speaker 1: 32:59

I could see you playing like a very grounded, chilled out I don't know farmer or character or stoner, like you know. That's just now the essence that you're giving to love that or what's it called Buddha or some like hippie character vibe, yeah.

Speaker 3: 33:17

I auditioned for a stoner one time, but I don't think I pulled it off.

Speaker 1: 33:22

Well, maybe you did, maybe it's just you know, you never know, but people want, people want to push you forward. Like my philosophy is like the more options I have, the better to like submit, unless it's like completely just wrong.

Speaker 3: 33:35

Does production give you a parameter Okay, we want to see five options or do they just totally leave it up to you and you decide how many, how many people you send forward?

Speaker 1: 33:46

There's normally like, yeah, a number of all park, like a minimum for sure, and normally that minimum is easily hit and then I can, if I get excited or if there's people that I think are still worst thing, I'll push. But yes, there's always people always want to see options. Like no one has ever said like I only need to see five, like people always want to see well, as much as you can get. Like normally the sweet spot is probably around like 20, 30 self-papes as a starting for like commercials or like short films. Like I don't like to overwhelm myself, but I would say that that's always a good amount of number. Like 20 or 30 options to like present 15, 20, maybe that's sort of where we start how many submissions and obviously it's like going to fluctuate.

Speaker 2: 34:28

On average would you say you get per project.

Speaker 1: 34:32

Yeah, I mean it's definitely growing and it definitely depends on the project Merging both platforms. I would probably say like 50 to 70 and then on top, like submissions or inquiries, 70 plus on a good day, like 50 on, like a more obscure role or something or like a more specific ass. And then I still do like reach outs to I'll do specific reach outs, but I'm doing a casting call right now for a Canadian shoe video and still like fashion, like Gen D, cool kids, like photo shoot happening in February. That is very easy to fill like. That is like I can easily get like 40 faces for them to show. It's just photos.

Speaker 1: 35:19

A lot of those types of people are on Instagram. That's like my main way of getting the word out. I don't even post something like that on actors access, mainly because it's print and it's not like an acting role. So definitely younger roles and younger demographics. Like I'll get way more for older roles, people more in the roles that you or guys fit like. Not as much and I only for the role that you last auditioned for for me, the singing role on breakdown express. I probably got like 10 self tapes for that role.

Speaker 3: 35:49

Wow.

Speaker 1: 35:49

For Isaiah. I mean, we had a lot of more auditions that I sourced and street scouted and that applied on Instagram, but the breakdown express pool for that was very minimal, Just because those types I feel like that type of that character he wasn't on after his access and like only a handful of people could have maybe molded into that and they submitted yeah, but yeah.

Speaker 3: 36:10

Yeah, yeah, I certainly, if I would have looked at that, I wouldn't have submitted just because of the singing aspect of it. I don't think.

Speaker 1: 36:17

Yeah, so a lot of people didn't submit for that. There's a lot of musicians first that are on actors access Right, those are where actors are, yeah.

Speaker 2: 36:26

Well, when you put that out, I had just started taking singing lessons from our mutual teachers, olivia Peck, and I was starting to feel good Like I even had put some on Facebook. You know, I don't expect to be a singer. I want to be a voiceover artist in animation, so I'm a cartoon, so I just need people to pay me to do that. So I went to strengthen my voice and learn how to sing. So when a certain mouse calls, I'm ready to before you know what I mean. So I was like oh well, I can't play, there's no music. Oh, you can sing, I'll give it a shot. So it was good timing for me.

Speaker 1: 36:52

Amazing. Yeah, no, I love it. And like I also am trying to get better at responding back and like thanking everyone every time for submitting, because those are important relationships and even if you don't hear back, like continuing to submit to the same casting director is great. Sometimes I would think when I was like an actor, I was like, oh, I didn't get this role. This casting director must think I'm bad. I don't know if I can ever submit to them. No, you should still continue to submit and I want to keep feeding those relationships with people who submit, no matter what. That is helpful and people get better and if you're not right for this year, right for the next, and it's not because you're bad. I'm truly appreciative and grateful of everyone that submits and want them to keep doing it.

Speaker 2: 37:32

Yeah, I think can't even say in a perfect world, in the super perfect world, if there was a way for you to easily almost like a rating system, well, this one was a five. You've improved since that. I liked your look, but it wasn't good for this cent where you didn't have to like type anything so that an actor could get feedback and not eat themselves alive worrying. Obviously, you can't do that as a casting director. It's terrible, you know, but that would be something too If we could all communicate that easily with that.

Speaker 1: 37:57

Yeah, I mean, honestly, a breakdown expressed does not make it easy to like. I wish I had everyone's email and I could just email. It's almost easier for me to email a blast Thank you. On actors access, it's like hard to like send out follow ups like that and that's what stops me. It's just like more of an annoying task.

Speaker 1: 38:14

With the short film that I was doing, like bread the director the one we were just talking about with the musician he was like I really want you to send out a thank you to everyone that submitted, because we had this huge pool of like 50 submissions from people that had send an email submissions because they found out about the project not through actors access. So with that I said out of thank you and said thank you so much for submitting, and he really wanted to do that because it is such a small town relationships we want to keep building, we don't want any bad blood. But yeah, I wish it were almost a little easier on breakdown express to have that communication between us and y'all. There's a little bit of a barrier behind the way actors access work. But yeah, don't worry and stress over it, because if you don't hear anything, you don't hear anything, and that's what it means. It's very lucky that it's very rare. Obviously, people don't say sorry, you didn't get it, like if you don't hear, you don't hear it. That's the no.

Speaker 3: 39:05

Right, right and an actor friend of mine, one of my early encouragers. After my maybe my first or second audition I asked him do you ever hear if you don't book it? And he said, oh no, you're not going to hear if you don't. And he told me just submit and forget. And since that day I don't give it another thought. Either I hear from them or I don't. At that point there's really there's nothing else I can do about it. You know, other than if I get a callback then I can start preparing again. But I really do try to practice what I preach on that it doesn't really bother me.

Speaker 1: 39:36

I think it's good self care because that's the only that's the best way to deal with it. You don't want to drive yourself nuts over nothing you can't control. So I think that's the best way Just submit it, forget it, move on. You don't have to worry about it, it's not worth it.

Speaker 2: 39:47

Yeah, I'm trying, I almost succeed once. Anyway, yeah, so we're coming up on that time.

Speaker 1: 39:57

I hope that. Well, this is kind of interesting. I didn't do it, it was very interesting.

Speaker 2: 40:01

It's very cool. You know we talked to in the majority it's been actors, and we want to expand that range and actors will love to hear thoughts from a casting director. They'll be like, okay, okay, write her name down. So when I submit to it's been fabulous you say that you promote on Instagram. Would you like to share any social media or anything like that to our listeners? To wrap us up, Absolutely.

Speaker 1: 40:22

You can follow my Instagram. At rudebellycasting, I post content that I have been working on. I also post casting calls regularly, whenever they come up, so I would say that's probably the number one source to find out about things that I'm casting. If you're an actor, I post all of my narrative projects on Active Access. So, yeah, let's keep in touch. Yeah, rudebellycasting on Instagram.

Speaker 2: 40:49

Awesome, fabulous. It's been great talking to you Thanks.